Even with all changes throughout the past year due to Covid-19, the outrageous pricing of AP exams has yet to change.  

The cash amount remains the same after years of students and parents complaining amongst themselves. It’s now time for them to be heard. Whether it’s writing to the board office, talking with AP teachers or talking to principal Jared McEvoy himself, change needs to be made.

AP exams cost around $99 per test; it’s $95 for the AP fee and a four dollar registration fee. If a student misses registration, they can still take the test, but it costs an extra $40, which adds up to be a whopping $139. It almost seems as if the College Board tries to squeeze every penny out of the parents’ wallets.

 Ninety nine dollars is merely the cost of one exam. For the students who want to receive as much college credit as possible, it’ll cost an ear and a leg to pay. To take three AP exams, it totals up to $297; to take all six, it costs $594. This simply isn’t affordable for all families.

The cost of the exams is enough to buy 750 packs of ramen noodles, according to the Tide, and that is only the amount for one AP exam. Imagine how much food and household necessities could be bought instead of thrown away for a packet of paper. The pricing discriminates against the families with lower financial stability and gives those who are better off money wise an advantage.

AP exams need to be free. Instead of charging horrendous amounts of cash, students passing their AP classes should receive a fair chance at testing. If not free, lower the price put in place that allows those lower income households to participate like any others.